The Campus

The Saint Michael’s campus, coupled with the splendor of the Green Mountains and vitality of the Burlington area, offers a superb environment in which to learn, recreate, and grow.

The campus shares and cherishes an environment that, by any standard, is exceptionally beautiful. Mount Mansfield, Vermont’s tallest peak, rises out of the morning mist to the east, and the view of the sun setting over Lake Champlain and the Adirondacks is often spectacular. Our own hilltop overlooks the winding Winooski River and covers a landscaped 440 acres, divided into the Main and North Campuses.

Main Campus

Founders Hall, the original College building, was built on a site once occupied by a farmhouse. At one time, the building housed all College functions, including dorm space, dining hall, gym and classrooms. It now doubles as a residence hall and administrative office space. The bell-tower atop Founders has long served as a symbol of Saint Michael’s College.

Completed in 2003, the Hoehl Welcome Center is a 14,000-square-foot administrative facility that is home to Saint Michael’s admission staff. The building was designed to reflect the College’s Edmundite roots by incorporating architectural elements reminiscent of European abbeys. The interior includes a spacious “living room” for visitors, interview rooms and a large presentation room equipped with the latest technology.

Jeanmarie Hall is the oldest academic building, but has recently undergone a comprehensive renovation that included the installation of various levels of technology in instructional spaces and wireless capability throughout.

St. Edmund’s Hall, completed in 1987, is a three-story, L-shaped academic building that connects Cheray and Jeanmarie Halls to form the academic quadrangle. Instructional space in the 70,000-square-foot building meets high academic standards. Modern audiovisual and information technology provides support for all academic programs.

Cheray Science Hall is the science classroom and laboratory building, and has been used by the many Saint Michael’s graduates who are now in the medical and science professions. A 10,000-square-foot addition to the building, as well as a total renovation of the original structure was completed in 1993. The building contains research labs designed specifically for collaborative faculty-student research, classroom and office space, and full computerization and telecommunications infrastructure.

The Michael and Margaret McCarthy Arts Center is the cultural center of campus. Among other capabilities, the center contains a modern and well-equipped theater. The proscenium-type theater is the scene of many student and professional productions, including an Actors Equity summer program. Music is another major emphasis at McCarthy Arts Center. In addition to providing a superb auditorium for visiting vocal and instrumental artists, the recital hall gives student musicians the opportunity to perform on campus.

Durick Library is a three-story, multiuse building at the intellectual heart of campus directly across the green from the Chapel. Renovated and expanded in 1992, the 60,000-square-foot building houses collections, ample study areas, library staff and service desks, faculty in the history and modern languages departments, an online searching space, computer labs, and classrooms.

The Chapel of Saint Michael the Archangel is the spiritual center of campus. Sunday Mass attracts capacity crowds, and participation in many aspects of the liturgy is encouraged. Contemporary in design, the Chapel seats 1,000.

Alliot Student Center includes the Green Mountain Dining Room, a café, offices for student organizations and student affairs staff, the College Store, and meeting and function spaces.

The energy efficient Quad Commons was completed in Fall 2013, it is a four-story high residence hall and dramatic multi-functional student center. The residence hall provides 110 attractive new living spaces. It has greatly enhanced the residential living-learning opportunities on campus. Dion Family Student Center offers an Einstein Bros. Bagels, a cardio-exercise facility, advanced technology throughout the building, casual meeting places, a meditation room, and more.

Bergeron Wellness Center, or “BEWELL”, is located in the building just adjacent to the tennis courts. The Bergeron Wellness Center provides confidential care for the bodies, minds, and spirits of our diverse student community and supports lifelong health and wellbeing.

Vincent C. Ross Sports Center is the College’s center of athletic activity. Included in the building are a 2,400-seat gymnasium with three full basketball courts and two volleyball courts. In other areas of the sports center are an NCAA regulation six-lane swimming pool with a one-meter diving board, men’s and women’s locker rooms, and training facilities. Nearby are fields for soccer, baseball, field hockey, lacrosse, and softball, including the Duffy Turf Field, as well as lighted tennis courts.

The facilities of the Ross Sports Center are complemented by the 67,000-square-foot Jeremiah J. and Kathleen C. Tarrant Student Recreation Center, a facility containing four indoor courts which can be used for tennis, volleyball, or basketball. The facility has a one-eighth mile indoor track, three racquetball courts, a squash court, aerobics studio, and dance studio. The center also features facilities for strength training, cardiovascular training, and aerobics.

Residence Halls

Joyce, Lyons, and Ryan are the main residence halls for first-year students, and Alumni houses upper-level students. They are now all connected by the new Quad Commons residence hall and student center.

As of 2004, Cashman, Pontigny, and Canterbury Halls are residences for 380 upper-level students. Single bedrooms are arranged in four- and eight-room suites, with additional space in each building for a staff apartment, seminar rooms, lounges and a great room with a fireplace. A new apartment-style residence hall located north of Canterbury Hall opened in Fall, 2016. This new residence makes use of the latest developments in “green” buildings and is expected to be entirely carbon neutral.

Hodson Hall offers apartment-style living for 63 upper-level students. Bernard L. BoutinCommons is one of four clusters of townhouses that provide apartment-style housing for 412 upper-level students. A typical townhouse features a furnished living room, dining area, and kitchen on the first floor, with bedroom space for four or six students. Each townhouse is very energy-efficient, utilizing a heat storage system and high R-value insulation. The most recent group of townhouses consists of three buildings, each having four apartments with six single bedrooms apiece, clustered around a commons building designed for classes and other functions.

North Campus

North Campus was, at one time, an army fort built to protect the area from the threat of invasion from the north. This historic landmark now provides space for a number of organizations, including Saint Michael’s College. Once known as Fort Ethan Allen, North Campus is located just one mile from the Main Campus.

Sloane Art Center is located on North Campus and provides studios for painting, sculpting, drawing and graphics, as well as offices and instructional space for visual arts faculty.

A recent partnership with the Vermont Youth Orchestra (VYO) led to a complete renovation of the old armory to create the Elley-Long Music Center at Saint Michael’s College. The arrangement gives the College some use of the facility, which includes a 250-seat concert venue, practice rooms, and administrative space for the VYO.